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(No'Mod'eL) l l 2 sheets-'sheet 1. F. A. BUNNELL'.

FILTER.

No. 492,134. l

'Patented 11611-21, 1893.

THE mums PETERS co.. PHuTaLl'rlja.. WASHINGTON. b. c.

No Model.) 2 sneets-Shet 2.

F. A'. BUNNELL. Y

FILTER. No. 492,134. Patented'lf'eb. 21, 1893.

ATENT rrrcn.

Nrrno FRANCIS A. BUNNELL, OF SYRAOUSE, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO CHRIS- TOPIIER O. BRADLEY AND MARY E. BUNNELL, OF SAME PLACE.

" FILTER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Il'.etter.sv Patent No. 492,134, dated February 21, 1893. Application led Marich 22, 1890. Serial No.344,981. (No model.)

T0 all whom it may concern..- ably supported on a false bottom or grate e Be it known that I, FRANCIS A. BUNNELL, formed by a number of boards secured to acitizen of theUnited States, residing at Syraeach other and resting on a bed of coarse cuse, in the county of Onondaga and State of gravel e which is placed in the concave bot- 55 5 New York, have invented a new and useful tom. of the filtering cylinder. This manner Improvement in Filters, of which the followof constructing a false bottom forms a very ing is a specification. simple horizontal support for thewater cham- This invention relates to that class of filters bers above the concave bottom of the filterin which the water or other liquid to-be puriing cylinder. 6c

1o fied percolates through abody of sand,gravel The top of each water chamber is formed or other granular filtering material and which by a perforated cover or diaphragm which are provided with a chamber covered with consists of thin slitted plates F of copper or perforated metal which supports the body of other'suitable metal and supporting plates G filtering material and through which the puriarranged above and below the slitted plates 65 r 5 fied liquid passes into said chamber. 'a and provided with slot-s opposite the slits of The objects of myinvention are to improve the latter. The slits f of the thin plates are the construction of the diaphragm which sepapreferably formed by arranging a number of rates the filtering material from the water strips or narrow plates edge to edge with the chamber and to provide a simple support for greater portion of one of the edges of each 7o zo the water chamber within the filter shell. strip cut away or recessed, as represented in ci In the accompanying drawings consisting Fig. 4, so that when the several strips rest r of two sheets, Figure lis a sectional elevation against each other with their end portions f of a water filter provided with my improvethe recessed portion of one strip will be ments. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section in line slightly separated from the edge of the adja- 75 z 5 -x, Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a vertical cross section cent strip and from anarrow slit. The thicker of one of' the filtrate chambers on an enlarged supporting plates G between which the thin scale. Fig. 4 is a fragmentary top plan view plates or strips are secured are provided with of the same partly in section. Fig. 5 is a top large slots g above andbelow the slitsf. The plan view showing a modified construction slitted plates F and their supporting plates G 8o 3o of the diaphragm. Fig. 6 is a cross section are preferably secured together by rivets h of the same. v Y and' then secured to the top of the water Like letters of reference refer to like parts chamber by means of' bolts z' so as to permit in the several gures. of ready removal for cleansingand other pur- A represent-s the upright cylindrical champoses. 85

35 ber or shell which contains the body B of fil- The slitted copper plates forming the diatering material, such as sand, charcoal, dre., phragm are sufficiently thin to permit very and which is provided with a man hole a in narrow and shallow slits to be formed be- ^\`.f\, its side wall. tween them. This prevents any of the solid C represents the water supply pipe proltering material from being carried down- 9o 4o vided with a hand valve c and d a branch wardly by the current of water into the slits pipe which enters the side of the cylinder and clog the same and obstruct vthe passage from the supply pipe O and opens above the of the filtered water. The fine slits in the filtering medium. A clear space b is left in diaphragm are very long and narrow so as to the upper end of the cylindrical chamber so provide very minute and elongated passages 9 5 45 as to allow the entering impure water to disfor the filtered water having a comparatively tribute itself over the filtering medium. large aggregate area. But while thethin dia- E represents a number of independent phragm is very desirable because it permits chambers arranged in the bottom of the filof very shallow slits being formed therein for tering cylinder and adapted to receive the the passage of the filtered waterit is liable to roo 5o filtered water which has percolated through lbe, broken and destroyed by the weight of the filter bed. These chambers are preferthe filtering material and the pressure of the water. This, however, is avoided by the slotted supporting plates arranged on opposite sides of the slitted diaphragm and protecting the latter against upward and downward pressure. By constructing the diaphragm of copper corrosion in the fine slits and the consequent liability of the clogging of these parts is avoided. If desired, the diaphragm can be formed out of one piece of sheet metal with the slits cut therein, as represented in Fig. 5. lVhen the filtering material or the water pressure is very heavy so as to necessitate the employment of heavier material for the slitted diaphragm the slits in the latter can be formed so as to diverge downwardly, as shown in Fig. G,thereby avoiding the clogging which would result in a comparatively deep slit having parallel sides.

J represents a delivery pipe arranged horizontally in the filter bed and provided with branch pipes which connect with each ofthe independent water chambers E.

K represents a check valve employing a swinging gate L and arranged in the lower horizontal portion y' of each branch pipey.

The water to be filtered enters the upper part of the cylinder through the supply pipe,

percolates through the body of filtering Inaterial and passes through the slitted diaphragms into the water chambers, where it collects in a puried state.

During the operation of filtering the gate of the check valve is kept closed by the water pressure, as represented in Fig. 3 in full lines, and the filtered water escapes slowly through an opening m formed in the gate L.

The several independent water chambers discharge the filtered water through the common delivery pipe .l which is provided with a valve O.

For the purpose of washing the filter the current is reversed by supplying water from a wash pipe P. This opens the gate of the check valve, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 3, and allows a free passage of the water upwardly through the filter.

By forming the diaphragm of slitted sheet metal it is rendered very durable and a sufcient aggregate area ot interstices is provided to permit the water to fiow readily and at the same time retain the filtering material.

By constructing the iilter with several independent Water compartments the capacity of the filter can readily be increased or diminished by increasing or diminishing the number of compartments and the construction of the filter is rendered very simple, durable and inexpensive.

I claim as my invention l. The combination with the filtering chamber, of a filter diaphragm composed of thin strips of metal arranged side by side and having their adjacent edges slightly separated, whereby narrow and shallow slits are formed between the strips for the passage of the filtered liquid, and a supporting plate having slots which are of greater width than said slits and arranged in line therewith, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination with the shell containing the filtering material and provided with a concave bottom, of water inlet and outletl pipes, water receiving chambers connected with said outlet pipe, and a horizontal grating or support resting on a gravel bed in the concave bottom of said shell and supporting said water chambers,substantially as set forth.

W'itness my hand this 13th day of March, 1890.

FRANCIS A. BUNNELL.

VitneSSeS:

THEO. L. POPP, JACOB NnssENnLAtm. 

